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The Little Steam Engine That Could

Tonight I am thinking about how hard it is to setup a foosball organization from scratch as one would like to see it. I have been reading all the comments from folks concerning the current state of affairs: Tournament problems, player issues, rule issues, table issues, no guidance, too much guidance, expensive buy-ins, not enough prize money, no long term plan for foosball, etc. etc. Our master plan addresses all these issues.

I have taken great pains to get Xfoos “right” before anyone sees it or buys it. This has been a long road and is about over. The man has yet been refined once more. Why refine a man 3 times before the public sees it? Why try 12 balls until the right one comes along? Because a second to none table is what I am after.

And what about the rest of the story? Well, the rules have been tweaked again, the format of the tournaments is ready, and the USXFF rating system is setup.

Also, I see we have a Fireball table now. People have asked me what do I think about it? Well, it is just another mechanical table, it has no timer on it, and it sells for too cheap of a price for the coin industry to embrace the table. It will always be compared to a Tornado. And why should a person buy one when they can get a Tornado? It does not make sense to me. I wish them well, but I do not see this as the end all solution. And no one can make any money at that price and the table is not worth any more than what it is selling for since it has not proven it can earn a return for the operator. The Xfoos table can make over $100/week with just 9 hours of playing time on it per week. True, players may like the fireball price, but if the distribution network does not take the table then it will go nowhere. Just my take.

So we are still moving forward, preparing, tweaking, until the time is right and then we will be having Austin and Texas events very soon now. One problem has also been re-setting up the Austin Foosball Club in what is now called the Treehouse. It is about ready too.

I am reminded of the story of the “Little Steam Engine That Could”. It huffed and puffed until it was done. Then it was going downhill. After 6 years Xfoos is about to go downhill.

See ya’ soon.

Simon

2 Comments to “The Little Steam Engine That Could”

Ironic I should check your website right after you post your first blog entry in forever.. Keep it up… and keep your head up. XFoos is a completely new and different game, we need not judge it in terms of other tables. While you do compete with the other manufacturers, at this point you all have the same ultimate goal.. to grow the base of serious players. If the player base keeps dwindling.. then all these companies eventually fail. So, while you’re competitors in the marketplace, all the manufacturers should work to improve their relationships with each other.